Bruins notebook: Trent Frederic’s versatility coming to light
Trent #Trent
If you listed some of Trent Frederic’s best attributes as an NHL player before this season, chances are that versatility would not have been high on that list.
Sure, Frederic grew up playing center and did so in college at Wisconsin and some in Providence. But much of the eye test data suggested that, as an NHL player, he’d be best as a straight-line rugged winger on his natural left side.
This season, however, is blowing up perceptions of Frederic.
Whether it’s been out of necessity because of injury or it’s the best fit for the team, Frederic has played all three forward positions, and has not looked out of place in any of them.
With Tomas Nosek still out for Saturday’s matinee against the Buffalo Sabres with an undisclosed injury, Frederic will get his second game centering the fourth line with Nick Foligno and A.J. Greer. His first game there went well. He scored his seventh goal of the season – one shy of his career high in a little more than half the games he played last year – in Boston’s 3-1 victory over New Jersey Devils.
This season has been an education, in the most positive sense of the word, for Frederic.
“I think he’s learning that he can now be put in any situation and just go play,” said coach Jim Montgomery. “And I hope he’s learned that the coaching staff trusts him in all those situations. To put him at center is because we trust him.”
Frederic said playing center for him is not that much of a change because, in the B’s system, the first forward back into the defensive zone assumes the center’s role of playing down low anyway.
“But I guess it’s good to have that mobility and kind of help out,” said Frederic, who split the four draws he took in New Jersey. “It just gives you more situations to be in.”
What is really getting him excited these days is playing right wing for the offense that it sparks in him. He’s played there most with Charlie Coyle in the middle and Taylor Hall on the left side, though Pavel Zacha has toggled with Hall there.
“I actually like the right most right now,” said Frederic. “It’s new for me but I definitely like right wing. I always wanted to try it because it just seems more natural to me. I like to take a guy one-on-one from the right side.”
The move to the right side has him thinking more offensively, and not just in the offensive zone, said Montgomery.
“I think the right side has opened up the creative side of the brain to be able to think a little more offensively,” said Montgomery. “Especially on wall play, coming out of the D-zone and neutral zone, he’s made a lot of smart plays to the middle of the ice that have led to real good transition for us and it’s something that’s a little easier on your off side. That’s why I think you see a lot of Russians play on their off side, typically.”
Frederic is not necessarily landing more shots than he did his first two NHL seasons, but the quality of shot has increased. He’s got a 16.1% shooting percentage as opposed to 8% last year and 9.1% two years ago. He’s hesitating much less now, whether it’s a quick catch-and-release wrister or a one-timer.
Montgomery joked earlier this season that he didn’t know Frederic had that one-timer in his arsenal, but the St. Louis native has always felt proficient at it. Playing on the right side has just allowed him to use it more.
“Me and my brother (Grant) would take thousands of shots and that’s the most fun shot to take, right? I took a bunch of them and I always felt I was pretty good at it,” said Frederic.
But what is working for Frederic most this season is the mindset that a little bit of success in the offensive zone has given him.
“It’s never easy but it feels good to get the offense going,” said Frederic. “A lot of it’s confidence. Seeing it go in the net is half the battle, knowing you can do it. And just playing more free. In past years, I’ve said before, I was playing more to not make a mistake. But it’s a game of mistakes and you’re going to make mistakes. Obviously, you don’t want to make many of them. But you can also play off them and fix them and make stuff happen. No one plays a perfect game, no matter how you draw it up. Maybe (Patrice Bergeron) comes close. But it’s not like football where you draw up a play and comes off perfectly.”
Hat trick
Many coaches at the Winter Classic have gone stylish with their head gear, be it a Fedora or a scally cap. But Montgomery expects he’ll wear just a simple knit winter hat when the B’s take on the Penguins at Fenway Park on Monday.
“I don’t have much Tom Landry in me. I’m more of a Jimmy Johnson guy,” joked Montgomery.
The Montreal native also said he had two favorite baseball teams growing up – the Expos, of course, but the Red Sox were his American League team.
Said Montgomery: “The ’78 team was when I really started watching baseball. And I hate Bucky Dent.”